【双语节气】二十四节气：立冬 The Beginning of Winter

立冬就代表着入冬?

In ancient times, the Chinese people took the Start of Winter to be the beginning of the winter. However, in fact, the Start of Winter is not the beginning of winter in terms of meteorology. The climate every year is different, so the beginning of winter could be quite different. And with the vast territory of China, winter of every area doesn’t begin at the same time.

中国古代的人们认为立冬就是冬天开始了。事实上，农历的“立冬”并不是气象学上冬季的开始。每年的气候条件不同，所以实际入冬的时间就有差异。再加上中国幅员辽阔，各地冬季开始的时间并不一致。

古代的迎冬活动

The four beginnings of the seasons were important festivals in ancient times. Before the Start of Winter, the ancient emperor would take a shower and have no more meat. On that day, the emperor would lead his officials to the suburbs and perform the ceremony of "welcoming the winter."

二十四节气中的四立，在中国古代是重要的节日，在“立冬”之前，天子会戒斋沐浴，“立冬”这一天，亲率群臣出郊，行“迎冬之礼”。

吃饺子

A legend has it that at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD25-220), "Medical Saint" Zhang Zhongjing saved many people in Henan province from a typhoid epidemic and their ears’ from being frostbitten around Start of Winter.

相传在东汉(公元25-220年)末年，“立冬”前后，很多河南省的老百姓患上了伤寒，耳朵被冻伤，“医圣”张仲景知道后巧施妙法帮老百姓治好了伤寒和耳冻。

He cooked mutton, hot peppers and herbs to dispel the cold and increase body heat. He wrapped these ingredients into a dough skin and made them into an ear shape. Since then, people have learned to make the food which became known as "dumpling". Today there is still a saying that goes "Eat dumplings on Start of Winter Day, or your ears will be frostbitten".

张仲景将羊肉，辣椒以及驱寒提热的药材煮熟，包在耳朵状的面皮中。此后，老百姓也开始模仿制作这种“耳朵状”食物即现在被大家熟知的饺子。直到今天，仍有“立冬不端饺子碗，冻掉耳朵没人管”的说法。

仫佬族的依饭节

Yifan Festival is one of the most important festivals of the Mulam ethnic minority in Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. It is held around the Start of Winter every three to five years and lasts one to three days. The festival includes inviting the god, offering sacrifices, asking the god to enjoy the sacrifice, singing praise of the god, drinking wine with the blood of chicken, and sending the god off.

依饭节是生活在广西壮族自治区的一个少数民族仫佬族的最重要节日之一，在立冬前后举行。依饭节每三年到五年举办一次，每次持续一到三天，主要仪式包括请圣，牲祭神灵，劝神，唱神，合兵(参加祭祀者将鸡血滴于酒碗中饮用，祈求神灵保护)以及送神。

食补

On the first day of Start of Winter, there is a custom, "nourishing the winter", in Southeast China in places such as Fujian, Guangdong and Taiwan provinces. To prepare for the oncoming cold winter, people there like to eat high-calorie food such as chicken, duck, beef, mutton, and fish, which are usually stewed with the four Chinese medicines: angelica, ligusticum wallichii, Chinese herbaceous peony and rehmannia glutinosa libosch, to enhance the effectiveness of the nourishment.

在中国东南部的一些地方比如福建、广东、台湾等地，流行在立冬这一天“食补”。人们食用鸡鸭鱼肉以及牛羊肉等高热量的食物，为即将到来的寒冬做准备。在烹煮时通常会加入中国传统的四味中药：当归，川芎，芍药以及地黄来增加食物的食补功效。

吃倭瓜饺子

In Tianjin, on the first day of Start of Winter, people eat dumplings stuffed with Chinese pumpkins (wogua). It is a common vegetable in North China. Generally, the pumpkins are bought in the summer and stored until the Start of Winter when they are taken out.

在天津，人们会在“立冬”这一天吃倭瓜馅包的饺子。倭瓜是中国北方一种很常见的蔬菜。通常人们会在夏天买了倭瓜储存下来专门等到“立冬”这一天食用。

无锡人吃团子

On the first day of Start of Winter, people in Wuxi have a custom of eating tuanzi, a kind of traditional Chinese food made with rice. At this time, the autumn grain crops have just been sold on the market, and the tuanzi made by the newly-harvested crops tastes delicious. Most rural residents make tuanzi by themselves, while urban residents buy ready-made tuanzi. The tuanzi stuffing can be sweet bean paste, radish or lard.

无锡人在“立冬”这一天有食团子的习俗。团子是一种由糯米制成的中国传统美食。每年冬天当年秋收的谷物一上市，市民就买来新鲜的谷物制作团子，吃起来口齿留香。现在，生活在农村的村民还会自制团子，不过城市的居民一般都是买现成的团子。团子的口味各不相同，有甜红豆馅，也有萝卜或是猪油馅。

祭祖

The Start of Winter, when the autumn crops have been placed in storage, was the time of the festival for the people of the Manchu Eight Banners and Han Eight Banners in Benxi of Liaoning province. Incense was burned and sacrifices offered to ancestors. The Eight Banners (baqi) were administrative/military divisions during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

“立冬”表示秋粮已入库，这个季节就是辽宁本溪当地满族八旗和汉八旗人家烧香祭祖的节日。八旗制度是中国清代(公元1644-1911年)的行政以及军事制度。